The Christmas Traditions of USA
The variations of the Christmas traditions of USA equal the
number active cultures that have settled in the land. These
cultural contributions were given a new lease of life by creative
artists, authors, poets and songwriters, and it was melded
together by the power of secular and commercialized media
in record companies, radio stations, television, cinemas and
now the internet. The unwritten law of media is the presentation
of a seemingly uniform celebration of the Christmas traditions
of USA. This is responsible for the world wide acceptance
of a universal Holiday image which they get from the media.
Nevertheless, the celebrations are peculiar to each region.
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Because of the federal government declaration of Xmas as
a recognized public holiday and the very celebration of Xmas
by a majority of the Americans, there was great development
of commercial opportunities for the Christmas traditions of
USA. While businesses and offices close on Xmas Day itself,
there is also boom in sales transactions. In the spirit of
gift-giving, business owners and offices give bonuses of extra
wages or salaries to the employees during this time which
give the families shopping money. For some, this will be seen
as responsible for a commercial Christmas traditions of USA,
but the various regional and cultural celebrations will show
that religious celebrations also abound the whole country.
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The sharp contrast of the Christmas traditions of USA between
the universal and native celebrations becomes more visible
with each region. American media is responsible for presenting
the universal contemporary form of Santa Claus to the whole
world. The Dutch Sinterklaas was transformed by artists
and writers into the present form of red suited, white bearded
laughing man on a reindeer driven flying sleigh. The ancient
rituals of the original settlers of the land have been left
to a small fraction of the remaining American Indian population.
The American Indians hold ritual dances during the winter
solstice. These dances were Christianized in San Felipe
Pueblo where the community holds native animal-masked dances
after the Xmas Eve sermon. The various nationalities who
settled in the land have their own forms and traditions
that they brought from their origins.
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Related:
Other countries:
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